This Perfect Pumpkin cake brings back memories. The tender, moist texture reminds me of the pumpkin cake bars I used to make in junior high. I got the treasured bar recipe from an old children’s cookbook. I lent the cookbook to a neighbor and never saw the book or the recipe again. Through trial and error, I came up with this perfectly spiced, soft fluffy cake, which I think is even better! It’s so delicious it doesn’t need frosting, but the classic pairing with cream cheese frosting takes it over the top.
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Ingredients
Pumpkin Cake
- 1 cup (128g) all purpose flour, sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, preferably freshly ground
- 1 cup (200g) sugar
- 2/3 cup (150ml) avocado oil or neutral oil of your choice
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (227g) pure pumpkin purée Not pie filling
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 6 tablespoons (85g) cream cheese, softened
- 6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, softened
- 3/4 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or pure vanilla extract
- 1 pinch fine sea salt
- 2 cups (240g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 1-3 teaspoons heavy cream, room temperature
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cake
Cream Cheese Frosting
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Instructions
Pumpkin Cake
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF (165ºC). Line the bottom of an 8-inch round cake pan* with parchment paper**. Grease and flour the insides.
- In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg until well combined.
- In a large bowl, beat the sugar, oil, eggs, vanilla and pumpkin purée with an electric mixer or by hand with a whisk, until smooth and well blended. Stir in the flour mixture, just until combined.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 38-43 minutes. Cool the cake in pan for 10 minutes. Remove the cake from pan and transfer to a cooling rack.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together with an electric mixer, until creamy. Beat in the vanilla extract and salt until well combined. On low speed, beat in the powdered sugar. Keeping the mixture at low speed, beat in the heavy cream a little at a time until your desired consistency is reached. Stir with a spatula to smooth out any bubbles.
Recipe Notes
*To find the cake pan I used, click here.
**To find the parchment rounds I used, click here.